Posts tagged Ballot

    Law to Increase Fast-Food Worker Wages Halted by Judge, Pitting Industry Groups Against Unions and State

    January 2, 2023 // If the signature drive doesn't qualify for a referendum and the law moves forward, fast food wages could be raised as high as $22 an hour by the end of 2023. California's minimum wage for all workers is set to rise to $15.50 an hour starting Sunday. Chang, the judge, scheduled a hearing on the matter for January 13. She also wrote that restaurant groups have failed to prove they properly served the state with the lawsuit, and she ordered them to do so.

    Labor Tries City-By-City Push In California For $25 Minimum Wage At Private Medical Facilities

    October 25, 2022 // What began as a 10-city campaign by the union has been winnowed to November ballot measures in just two cities in Los Angeles County, reflecting expensive political jockeying between labor and industry. And the $25 minimum wage isn’t the only campaign being waged by SEIU-UHW this cycle — the union is also trying for the third time to get dialysis industry reforms passed. A ballot issue committee called the California Association of Hospitals and Health Systems — with funding from Kaiser Permanente of Northern California, Adventist Health, Cedars-Sinai, Dignity Health, and other hospitals and health systems — opposes a $25 minimum wage because it raises costs for private, but not public, hospitals and health care facilities. Opponents have latched on to this disparity by calling it the “unequal pay measure.” An analysis commissioned by the California Hospital Association estimated that the change would raise costs for private facilities by $392 million a year, a 6.9% increase, across the 10 cities.

    Illinois: Concerns raised Amendment 1 could open door to public safety strikes

    October 21, 2022 // Supporters say Amendment 1 aims to codify collective bargaining rights in Illinois for wages, work conditions, and other issues. Opponents say that the amendment would lead to higher property taxes for residents. The Illinois Municipal League argues against the measure, saying if approved, it could lead to strikes among emergency workers. The measure will be on the ballot for the Nov. 8 election. The question requires either three-fifths approval of those voting on the question or a simple majority of all votes cast in the election to be enacted.

    Two states, two visions for the future of labor “Right-to-work” is on the ballot.

    October 3, 2022 // Two economic papers published in the last year also reached different conclusions about the consequences of right-to-work laws. The first found right-to-work laws associated with increased manufacturing employment, increased employment, and greater upward mobility. The second found that right-to-work laws lower wages and unionization rates.

    Illinois has seen 48 teacher strikes in 10 years.

    March 5, 2022 // Illinois has seen 48 teacher strikes in 10 years. None of Illinois’ neighboring states let unions use students and their educations as bargaining chips.